NEWS: Fraud at Stop & Shop
Stop & Shop, a grocery store chain with many
stores in the New England region, issued a
statement at the end of last week stating that
store officials were aware of at least two
tampered-with EFT units at two Rhode Island
stores, sparking fears of fraud. The EFT
(Electronic Funds Transfer) units were traced to
two specific checkout lanes, one at a Coventry
store, and one in Cranston. EFT is the technical
term for what most consumers would call a credit
card reader, which has a PIN pad attached. It
has been proven that credit and debit card
information was somehow pilfered from these
machines, although, at this time, there have
been no complaints of fraudulent activity
reported as related to the incident. Further
evidence of tampering was also discovered in
stores in Bristol, Providence, and Warwick, RI,
as well as at a store in Seekonk, MA. At this
time, however, there is no evidence to suggest
that any consumer information was obtained
through EFT machines at these four locations.
Stop & Shop's statement apologized to consumers
for the incident, but also assured the public
that the store is working with local police
forces and the U.S. Secret Service to try and
uncover more facts about the tampering, up to
and including who did it. The statement also
reassured customers that the EFT units in all
stores had been checked for security, and that
officials were confident in consumers' security
in using them going forward. Their
recommendation was that all shoppers who had
patronized the affected shops over the timeframe
of the tampering check their bank statements for
any signs of suspicious activity, and gave phone
numbers and e-mail addresses at which to notify
Stop & Shop as well as local police. The
statement concluded with a promise to notify
consumers as soon as any new information was
brought to light.
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